Neutronic reactor core instrument

Claim 1

A NEUTRON RESPONSIVE INSTRUMENT FOR MEASURING NEUTRON FLUX, RATE OF COOLANT FLOW AND COOLANT TEMPERATURE WITHIN A NEUTRONIC REACTOR COMPRISING A HOLLOW HOUSING MEMBER ADAPTED FOR INSERTION INTO THE COOLANT STREAM IN A REACTOR AND MADE FROM A MATERIAL WHICH IS NONFISSIONABLE AND HAS A LOW ABSORPTION CROSS-SECTION FOR NEUTRONS, A HEAT CONDUCTING MEMBER PROTRUDING INWARDLY FROM THE INSIDE WALL OF THE HOUSING MEMBER AND CONTAINING AN AMOUNT OF NEUTRON FISSIONABLE MATERIAL AT ITS INNERMOST END NEAR THE CENTER OF THE HOLLOW PORTION OF THE HOUSING MEMBER AND WHICH FUNCTIONS AS A HEAT SOURCE DUE TO THE HEAT GENERATED THEREIN BY NUCLEAR FISSION TO PRODUCE A TEMPERATURE GRADIENT ALONG THE HEAT CONDUCTING MEMBER, A FIRST THERMOCOUPLE HAVING ITS JUNCTION IN CONTACT WITH THE HEAT CONDUCTING MEMBER AT A FIRST POINT ADJACENT THE FISSIONABLE MATERIAL, A SECOND THERMOCOUPLE HAVING ITS JUNCTION IN CONTACT WITH THE HEAT CONDUCTING MEMBER AT A SECOND POINT NEAR THE WALL OF THE HOUSING MEMBER, AND A THIRD THERMOCOUPLE HAVING ITS JUNCTION IN CONTACT WITH THE WALL OF THE HOUSING MEMBER AT A POINT SPACED FROM THE HEAT CONDUCTING MEMBER WHERE THE TEMPERATURE IS THAT OF THE COOLANT MEDIUM IN CONTACT WITH THE EXTERNAL SIDE OF SAID WALL, THE THERMOCOUPLES BEING ADAPTED TO MEASURE THE TEMPERATURE AT SAID POINTS, THE TEMPERATURE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND POINTS BEING PROPORTIONAL TO AND DETERMINATIVE OF THE NEUTRON FLUX IN THE REGION OF THE INSTRUMENT AND THE TEMPERATURE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE SECOND AND THIRD POINTS BEING PROPORTIONAL TO AND DETERMINATIVE OF THE MASS FLOW RATE OF THE COOLANT IN SAID REGION.